When most artists write songs about songwriting, they embarrass themselves with maudlin sentiment or self-aggrandizing egotism. That goes double for songs about how hard it is to be a star. Nobody wants to hear someone famous complain about how hard it is to make a living in show business. With “Sad Songs And Waltzes,” Willie Nelson addresses both those subjects without sounding like a fool. He wrote the song just before he became a household name, but he can still sing the tune today as a superstar and get away with it, thanks to his earthy, anti-showbiz stance. He tells everyone his gal cheated on him and done him wrong, and you can almost hear him smirk as he sings: “My record may say it, but no one will play it, ’cause sad songs and waltzes aren’t selling this year.”
Today we bring you a super jam by British prog rock band, Yes.“Yours Is No Disgrace” is the opening track of the 1971 release The Yes Album.This is one of the band’s first experiments with longer songs, which would become a staple trademark for the band in years to come.Today’s selection is also the first song to feature Steve Howe on guitar.However, the song contains vital contributions from all band members including an instrumental duet between organist Tony Kaye and bassist Chris Squire, and even an a capella piece by Jon Anderson.
People are always quick to point out the lineage of hitmakers like Julian Lennon, Jeff Buckley or Jakob Dylan. Or Roseanne Cash & Hank Williams, Jr. But, R&B seems to get a bit of a snub when it comes to offspring. Case in point: million-seller Gerald Levert. Not only did he and his brother Sean front LeVert, but they were the sons of O’Jays lead singer Eddie Levert. When Gerald went solo, his first album – Private Line – went platinum and boasted a number of great tracks including today’s DFD selection. And, that was just the beginning of a multi-million selling career. Sadly, Gerald passed away in 2006 – he would have been 44 today. Brother Sean died in 2008. For all the joy & music the Levert family has brought us, while we groove to today’s selection – people all over the world, join hands.
Artifacts are a quintessential relic of the ‘90s “backpack” genre (basically, underground, non-gansta rap music favored by die-hard Stans). The New Jerusalem (aka New Jersey) duo composed of ex-graffiti writers Tame One & El Da Sensei respected all of hip-hop’s founding elements, emphasizing beats and rhymes as much as graf and b-boying. The celebratory “Art of Facts” is rap bliss, a hypnotic track full of chimes, hi-hats and looped wailing reminiscent of an ol’ coot on the verge of climax.Reaching into their “X-Files of styles” Tame and El let loose and when they do you can practically see the spliff smoke rising to the ceiling of a dirty dorm room while a turntable spins wax diligently in the background. Here’s to hoping that hip-hop as an art form never vanishes. (Word to Indiana Jones.)
Here is Andy Sturmer and Roger Manning Jr.’s pre-Jellyfish band, Beatnik Beatch.Today’s selection is a stark, rhythmic exercise in catchy power pop form that gives us a taste of what Andy and Roger were doing right before their Jellyfish years.Although Beatnik Beatch was the band’s major-label debut, the album was actually used some material from their 1986 indie release At the Zulu Pool.
A beautiful jangly pop song, “Carry The Torch” comes from Fire Town’s first album, In the Heart of the Country.Producer extraordinaire, Butch Vig, drums on both of their albums long before he produces the game changing album Nevermind by Nirvana.Sounding nothing like his previous band, Spooner, or his later band, Garbage, Fire Town comes on like a retro pop band with ’80s flourishes.If you’re into that sound, both Fire Town albums are worth checking out.“Carry The Torch” just sounds like a great summer song, so put the top down and cruise…
RATT’s multi-platinum debut LP, Out Of The Cellar, spawned a multitude of radio and MTV smash singles and made the band worldwide rockstars overnight. However, the album also contains a number of solid deep tracks that hold their own, including today’s Damn Fine Day pick: “You’re In Trouble”. Rightfully sequenced at # 2 on the album’s tracklisting, sandwiched between the monster hits “Wanted Man” and “Round And Round”, this fan favorite could easily have been released as a single. Starting off with a long intro of bass and drums pounding out a jungle-like vibe (surely inspired by Van Halen’s “Everybody Wants Some”) that extends through the first verse, the song suddenly explodes into a super catchy chorus. This is where we finally get to hear RATT’s trademark dual buzzsaw guitars (Robin Crosby and Warren DeMartini’s tone and style personify early 80’s metal here). This song simply exudes the hairspray, lipstick, and spandex glory days of when RATT ‘N ROLL ruled the Sunset Strip and beyond.
With all the controversy heating up in Arizona over immigration, we thought it would be fitting to feature a song by Arizona’s own - Alice Cooper. Practically every song from School’s Out is gold, including today’s track “Alma Mater,” a whimsical ballad in which Alice reminisces about his younger days at Camelback High School. Between Alice’s nostalgic vocals and Michael Bruce’s harp-like acoustic guitar, you can’t help but to get caught up in the moment.
If you had a chance to see Jeff Beck on his 2010 tour, you had the pleasure of experiencing one of the world’s most incredible drummers, Narada Michael Walden.Narada plays with a sensitivity and artistry that is truly delightful. All of his notes are played with excellence, from whispery-quiet-tasty cymbal work to thunderous double bass crescendos.“Saint and The Rascal” is one of several exceptional songs from Narada’s Garden Of Love Light album, which is a great listen from beginning to end.
Solomon Burke is one of the less known treasures of the Atlantic soul catalog. Although he has been covered by a number of greats including The Rolling Stones, Wilson Pickett and the Blues Brothers, Solomon never quite attained the same mainstream success as Otis Redding or Aretha Franklin. However, one listen to today’s track and I think you’ll agree that he rightfully deserves a seat amongst the great soul singers of our time. The song “Cry to Me” went over very well when it was first released in 1962, and also turned a few heads in the ’80s when it used in the film Dirty Dancing.
It speaks volumes about Aretha Franklin–whom we celebrate today on her 68th birthday–that even God couldn’t turn her down. (For you wee bairns out there, that’s “God” as in “Clapton is God,” the anonymous graffiti first scribbled on London’s Islington Tube Station’s walls in 1965.) Eric Clapton is credited with “guitar obbligato” on “Good to Me as I Am to You,” the soul-deep, slow-cooked blues moan (co-written by Franklin and then-husband Ted White) from 1968’s Lady Soul LP, yet he’s no more (or less) a hired gun than Tom Cogbill (whose conversational bass lines cut a calm counterpart to the singer’s increasingly frenzied vocals), or the all-star horn section (as airtight as James Brown’s Famous Flames, and as wise as a Greek chorus). Make no mistake, “Good to Me as I Am to You” is all Aretha: begging and demanding within the space of a single note, flirting with chaos at the edge of tonal control, uncompromising, undeniable, and, for nearly seven decades, absolutely unequalled.
Looking for some tasty, quirky guitar playing? Here it is. Adrian Belew is a seasoned veteran who has complimented Frank Zappa, King Crimson , Talking Heads and, on this track, David Bowie. “Pretty Pink Rose” is the perfect song to get into Spring fever mode. Upbeat, poppy and a beat you can wrap your head around. Adrian is a very underappreciated guitar master who deserves to be heard. Do yourself a favor, check this out and see if you agree.
To cover a song well, you’ve GOT to bring some heat to the table. Wilson Pickett was a master of that game. While he was a master songwriter in his own right, the wicked Pickett could make any song his own. Case in point: Johnnie Taylor recorded Isaac Hayes and David Porter’s “Toe Hold” in 1966, but Pickett put his own spin on it for 1969’s Hey Jude album. Maybe it was fuel from his heated relationship with Stax, but Wilson burns this track up. His classic delivery sails and pleads and cuts straight to the core. And, who’s playing that smokin’ guitar? None other than a cat named Duane Allman. On what would have been his 69th birthday, give it up for Mr. Wilson Pickett!
Stay Hungry’s “Horror-Teria” is actually two songs crowded into one funhouse. “Captain Howdy” is a sudsy sludge propelled by the towering menace of Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider, who would resuscitate the title malevolent, prick his body with various metals and tattoos, slide into his skin, and terrorize a celluloid suburbia in the 1998 motion picture Strangeland. “Street Justice” rides the neighborhood outrage generated by its predecessor’s unrepentant carnage, building on the tense guitars of Jay Jay French and Eddie “Fingers” Ojeda and bursting in the cathartic chorus’ fist-pump call-to-arms. Howdy’s fate at the hands of vigilantes is left open-ended, but since Snider’s been hard at work preparing Strangeland II for production, it’s safe to assume the captain’s reach remains considerable.
Following up their mega-hit eponymous debut, The Cars struck back in 1979 with the Roy Thomas Baker produced Candy-O.While “Let’s Go” and “Dangerous Type” were more present on radio at the time, the title track remains a favorite and is something that always puts this writer in a good mood.
We close out Black History Month with not only one of the most important Black musicians, but one of the most important musicians in the history of the art form, Ray Charles.Known worldwide for his inimitable vocal style, today’s track, “How Long Blues” recorded in 1958 features Ray’s equally impressive piano virtuosity.Combined with the smooth sounds of vibraphonist extraordinaire Milt Jackson, this track is the perfect way to head into the weekend and end a month-long celebration of some of the greatest music ever recorded.
When Clyde McPhatter created The Drifters for Atlantic Records in 1953, no one could have imagined that group would not only create hits for 13 years with the label, but become known as one of the greatest vocal groups of all time. With a virtual turnstile of members, The Drifters had hits with 7 different lead vocalists – one of which being the iconic Ben E. King. It’s hard to believe King’s tenure with the band lasted only 12 months, but two years after his departure, Atlantic pulled a King vocal from the vaults and released “Sometimes I Wonder” in hopes of solidifying The Drifters’ chart presence and perhaps to capitalize on King’s solo success. While this tale of yearning, with a truly impassioned vocal, didn’t chart, all was not lost. That same month the band cut a little track called “Up On The Roof” and The Drifters’ legacy continued.
Aretha Franklin is a force of Nature, a gift from God. Her fierce, joyous, ferociously sexual voice encompasses gospel, blues, pop and jazz, effortlessly leaping from growling lows to glass-shattering highs in pitch-perfect two-octave bounds. From her 1967 Atlantic Records debut, across five albums (four Top 5) and nine singles (eight Top Ten), and through the summer of 1968 (when Time magazine honored her as the first Black woman on its cover), Franklin soared to the summit of American popular culture, her sweet, smiling visage among the most recognizable Black faces in the country alongside Martin Luther King Jr., Bill Cosby and Harry Belafonte. Franklin’s apocalyptic “Respect” (a #1 hit in 1967) alone inspired more Black Pride and perked up more white ears than a month of marches and sit-ins. In the midst of all this, opening Side Two of Aretha Now, her fourth LP, awaits the subtle gem, “You’re A Sweet, Sweet Man.” Riding atop drummer Roger Hawkins’ spare, funky back-beat, Franklin settles effortlessly into a no-nonsense, soul-deep groove, her electrifying moans and spine-chilling swoops sending sugar to her lover as the Sweet Inspirations lay down some honey in the background.
Seriously.How can you not love a song called “Wham Bam Thank You Ma’am”?A decade before David Bowie made it rock & roll vernacular; Charles Mingus featured a track named for a phrase he attributed to Max Roach on a classic album whose other song titles include “Eat That Chicken” and “Oh Lord, Don’t Let Them Drop That Atomic Bomb On Me.” Plus, Oh Yeah featured Mingus, normally a bassist, on piano and vocals.Yeah, vocals.And while Mingus isn’t exactly “easy” by default, this album is – simply put – a trip.“Wham Bam” almost sounds like a Raymond Scott arrangement of a Thelonius Monk Ellington pastiche, performed by Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band.It coasts and swerves but the band never loses grip on the wheel.A musician friend once told me that jazz was more fun to play than to listen to.Maybe, but not this time!
Many regard Dusty In Memphis as one of the greatest albums of all time. With a record that’s loaded with sultry grooves like the acclaimed “Son of A Preacher Man” it’s hard to disagree. But despite it’s mass notoriety, there are few tracks that may have been overlooked such as the heavyhearted “I Don’t Want To Hear It Anymore”. This track sums up all that is great about the album: Dusty’s emotionally charged voice accentuated by a first rate production courtesy of Jerry Wexler, Arif Mardin, and Tom Dowd. Heartbreak never sounded so good.
Chicago saxophonist Harris is best known for his 1961 crossover hit “Exodus,” his ’70s collaborations with pianist Les McCann (“Compared to What”) and the raw raps he put down on The Reason Why I’m Talkin’ S—t (1976). Here, though, he stretches out on a slab of sulphuric funk-jazz that riffs in the vein of “Green Onions” or the innumerable covers of Sonny Boy Williamson’s “Help Me” cut by Brit bands of the ’60s. Piano, guitar, drums and bass (the latter played by the MGs’ Duck Dunn) provide kindling for a slo-burn jam that Harris, on amplified sax, and trumpeter Ira Sullivan crash and splash through for seven-plus minutes. So ceaseless is the track’s big fat groove, it could be a loop. When it feels this good, why stop?
Back in the Spring of 1953, Ray Charles, history’s undisputed “Genius of Soul,” languished little-noticed, an undistinguished jazz/blues crooner, a minor-league Nat “King” Cole. Still 18 months in the future lay his titanic “I’ve Got a Woman,” for which Charles would recontextualize the sanctified cry of such Gospel growlers as the Five Blind Boys and Professor Alex Bradford–replacing, as it were, the “Lord, Lord”s with “baby, baby”s–thus almost single-handedly birthing Soul music. That May 17, however, Charles’ new boss, Atlantic Records’ co-founder Ahmet Ertegun, working on a hunch, called his then-unproven 22-year-old pianist into a New York recording studio to take a whack at a little boogie-woogie ditty Ertegun had penned called “Mess Around.” Truth be told, the tune’s not much more than a riff with wheels, but, Boy Howdy, do Charles and band goose the damned thing, four to the floor, like Rat Fink revving a chopped deuce coupe on jet fuel. It’s real, real gone, man. For most R&B stars of the era, “Mess Around” would stand as a career high-water mark. Amazingly, Brother Ray was just warming up.
Merry Christmas from everyone at Damn Fine Day! Our present to all of our listeners this year is a little sass and a lot of soul courtesy of Solomon Burke. With his booming vocals and fiery interjections, it’s no surprise that Solomon began his adult life as a preacher and gospel radio host. And while he may not have attained the same mainstream success as Otis Redding or Wilson Pickett, he deservedly secured his seat in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with a number of first-rate songs. “Presents for Christmas” is a fervent showcase of Solomon’s flair, his voice enlivened by a particularly vivacious band. If you listen closely you can hear the ecstatic howls of the other musicians in the background, praising Solomon’s voice for exactly what it is, a gift.
Happy Holidays! For your musical pleasure, Damn Fine Day is featuring a week’s worth of holiday gems, and to kick things off here is a tasty rendition of “Merry Christmas Baby” by Booker T. & The MG’s. A number of artists from Bruce Springsteen to Otis Redding have covered this song, but only Booker T. & the MG’s do the track justice without singing a word. This song is off In The Christmas Spirit, an album chock-full of sultry renditions of holiday standards. If you liked “Green Onions” give this album a spin and you’ll realize that the Memphis legends can bring the house down any time of year.
This is the song that got me interested in the amazing voice of the incomparable Mel Torme. It may not be one of his most famous songs, but it was the perfect theme song to the movie of the same name starring Jane Fonda, Cliff Robertson and Rod Taylor. Please seek it out if you’re a fan, as I am, of those mid-’60s romantic, slapstick, mistaken-identity type films. After I heard the song in the movie, I found the song on Mel’s Atlantic album, Songs Of New York and to my rocker’s ears, the whole album swung. Hopefully this song will do for you what it did for me . . . . . it made me a huge fan of Mel Torme and all of his great music.
